Grocery Challenge: Week 4

This week (really 10 days) was a very light shopping week. I spent the weekend in Texas, which kept me out of the stores.

Dominicks:
1 10-pack of 100% juice Capri Sun, 3 lb Gala apples, 1 large pepperoni take 'n bake pizza
Total: $8.28

Target:
jumbo pack Up and Up diapers, Aveeno baby shampoo, 2 tubs Carnation Instant Breakfast rich milk chocolate powder, 2 6-packs Boost Kids Nutritional drink, 3 Musketeers bar, Kashi Honey Sunshine cereal, box of Morton's kosher salt, 4 lb chicken leg quarters, bottle of Opti-Free Replenish contact lense solution
Total: $21.77

Week 4 Total: $30.05
Week 4 Saved: $40.43


September Total: $227.68
September Savings: $189.39

More to come about what we ate, and how I really saved more than $189.39 this month.

Grocery Challenge: Week 3

I did attempt to work two deals this week, the Kashi deal at Target (buy 5, get $5 back) and the General Mills/Nature Valley deal at Dominick's. I was not as successful as I could have been at Target because I waited too long and all the Honey Sunshine cereal, for which I had a free box coupon, was gone. (Those coupons came from Vocalpoint.) I also shared some coupons with my boss, assuming I'd be able to use the cereal coupons. So instead of $.10 a box, I paid about $.60 per box. At Dominick's, I was far more successful. The store ended up paying me $.80 to buy 8 bags of Nature Valley Granola Clusters and a 10-ct box of Capri Sun. (I have a coupon for another free box of Capri Sun to redeem as well.) That deal came as a result of coupons for $1.60 off sent by the General Mills Pssst! program, plus a sale at Dominick's.

Grocery Challenge: Week 2

For last week's results, read Week 1.

Fewer grocery trips this week, only Dominick's, Target, and Aldi. The biggest expense was diapers. Normally I would not buy the new premium diapers, but I happened to have $8 in coupons I could use for two boxes, plus Target was offering a $10 gift card I can roll toward more groceries later in the month. It worked out to a decent price per diaper, so we gave it a try.

Dominick's:
1 doughnut, 5.5 lb country style pork ribs, 2 lb Bartlett pears, large pepperoni take 'n bake pizza
Total $13.10

Target:
3 pack Up and Up baby wipes, 1 pair toddler socks, 1 can sliced olives, small loaf French bread, 1 cup Honey Nut Cheerios, 1.5 lb bananas, 3 pints coffee creamer (1 Intl. Delights, 2 Coffee-Mate), 2 quarts whole milk plain Dannon yogurt, 12 pack Cottonelle toilet paper, 2 value boxes Pampers Premium Absorbency diapers
Total $67.08

Aldi:
Dozen eggs
Total $.95

Total spent $87.03
Total saved $53.55


Sept. total $133.95
Sept. total savings $85.84

How I Find Deals

"Where do you get your coupons?"

A woman at Target asked me that today as she watched me check out. I had the handful of coupons in the photo above, minus the ones for Boost Nutritional Drinks, since they were out of stock. Before I handed over the coupons, my total was $98.80. After coupons, I paid $67.08 and got a $10 gift card to use later.

I gave her the answer I usually give, which is that I get them from a lot of places, and then I gave her the names of a few blogs. In truth, I find coupons four ways: through blogs, given at the register, in the newspaper, and in the mail. It's very easy to get consumed by couponing, spending hours per week scouring the Internet for deals. It's also very easy to spend more than you intended because "it's a deal."

For me, the keys are simple:

• Don't buy something you won't use, even if it's free. Others will disagree, but this works for my family.
• Know the best prices. I keep a simple price book in Google Documents, noting the best sales and where I found them. This is very handy for staples such as milk, eggs, and meat.
• Stay out of the shops. Shopping more than a few times a week (and without a list!) will drive up your spending. 

Now, as for finding deals and coupons, I read blogs. Why should I scour all the ads and shelf prices when there are tons of people out there already doing it and sharing what they know? It can be dizzying reading so many blogs, so I keep it simple. I organize all my blogs in Google Reader. Then I can easily flip through all my blogs on one screen, saving and noting anything I will need later. Great, high-value coupons to pair with sales are often noted in these blogs, and I can click the links directly.

How do you get started? First things first. Create a junk email account. Use this for all your deals and sign-ups. This will allow you to read your deals without cluttering up your personal account. It will also keep the spam down on your personal account. When you start signing up with various rewards programs, use this email address. Do not give your full name. Use a nickname or your first initial. Then you'll easily spot mail which came from your deals.

Which blogs should you read? That depends on where you live and where you shop. I've shared a good starting list through Google Reader and will add to it as I find new resources.
Shared Items

Personally, I only look at a few deal/coupon blogs two or three times a day. I also only buy one newspaper. I don't have time to clip more coupons than that. If you need more copies of something, you can use a site like Coupon Clippers. I also trade coupons with friends. And when I end up with extras or I clip something I don't end up using, I sometimes hand these over to other shoppers in stores.

Grocery Challenge: Week 1

At the end of week 1, I've gone to Aldi, Sam's, SuperTarget, Dominick's, and Jewel.

SuperTarget:
Pampers Cruisers jumbo, Pampers Sensitive wipes, vegetable bouillon cubes, 1 can tomato sauce, 1 can tomato paste, 2 cans no-fat refried beans, salsa, 1 lb bag white beans, small loaf French bread, single-serve cup Honey Nut Cheerios, can green beans, 2 cans black beans, 1 can kidney beans, 4 cans mixed fruit and oranges, 5 lb bread flour, Command adhesive strips, 2 boxes Special K blueberry cereal, 2 boxes Special K chocolatey pretzel bars
Total $32.73

Sam's:
2 gallons milk
Total $2.94

Dominick's:
large pepperoni take 'n bake pizza
Total $6.09

Aldi:
1 gallon milk, Mini Babybel cheese, dozen eggs, 5 lb red potatoes
Total $7.49

Jewel:
2 cans Grands refrigerated buttermilk rolls, 2 packages Oreos
Total $3.63

Week 1 total spent: $52.88
Week 1 total saved: $32.29

The $250 Challenge

Last month, with my son's birthday party and a few rebate deals, we went way over budget. ($95) My usual budget is $400 a month, a bit high for a family of two adults and one toddler, but I include paper goods, cleaning products, toiletries, and diapers. Why? Because I generally buy these at Target and separating everything out on the receipts would take more time than I care to spend right now. 

Between the Kraft rebate, the Kellogg's rebates, and a few other deals, I have a huge store of food. I've also got a stand-up freezer full of meat, nearly free Eggo Bake Shop items, and other items. So this month, I'm going to try to cut our budget to $250. Because we have so much saved up, I think we can do it.